Competency based interviews

Increasingly, employers are using 'competency-based' (also sometimes called 'behavioural' or 'situational') interviewing techniques to separate out the good candidates from those who are simply trying to bluff their way into the job without the right skills or experience.

The theory behind competency-based interviewing is that past work behaviour is a good predictor of future job performance. When interviewers ask you competency-based questions, they want you to talk about how you have actually tackled real problems in the past. From this, they are trying to infer how effectively you would tackle future problems if they were to offer you a job.

In responding to a competency-based question, the most important principle is to: Give a real example that actually happened to you. Don't talk in broad terms about how you generally tackle those sorts of situations. Talk about a specific example.

Once you have talked about your example, the interviewer will probably ask you further questions to get a deeper understanding of what you did. So, the second key principle is: Be ready to talk about your example in a lot of detail.

What is the best way to prepare for a Competency Based Interview?

• Read the employer's brochure and/or job description, and note the skills and competencies they require.
• Note down any examples you can think of when you have put these competencies into practice.
• Compose a paragraph or so for each situation, outlining what happened, how you approached it and what the outcome was.

The most important part of a Competency Based Interview is how you structure your answer."STAR" format should help you to structure these outlines:

The focus should be on you even if the situation involved a group, interviewers will want to know what was your specific role in achieving the desired result. Once you have done this, select the examples which you feel are the best illustrations of the required competence.

Typical Competencies tested for in the Banking industry:

Leadership: Demonstrates Vision, Strategic approach, promotes development within team, influences progress, delivers results and leads by example.

Sales: Demonstrates Identification of sales opportunities, builds rapport, gathers information, demonstrates product/service capability, awareness of group stakeholders and closes sales.

Personal Development: Identifies development needs, maximises learning options, creates opportunities to learn, takes risks in learning, develops knowledge or skill.

Decision Making: Sources knowledge, establishes decision criteria, balances opportunities and risks and considers all decision strategies.

Professional Relationship Management: Demonstrates strategic approach, seeks beneficial outcomes (Internal and External), develops solutions, obtains agreement, acknowledges contributions and creates a sales environment.

Teamwork: Demonstrates effective communication, open and honest, balances needs, shares best practice and actively collaborates.

Coaching: Establishes performance goals and measures, fosters talent, establishes development plans, provides support, tracks and evaluates performance.

Developing Capability: Demonstrates ability to grow internal capability (Talent pooling) creating an environment that values continual feedback, coaching, development and shared learning to deliver sustained performance against the developing needs of the business.

Business & Market Awareness: Demonstrates awareness of competitor/financial market activity and economic developments, successfully communicates information (Internal and External) in order to contribute to business success. Commits to achieving the highest product and/or service quality, at competitive market rates.

Identifying Needs and Creating Solutions: Demonstrates entrepreneurial approach, driven by customer needs, identifies opportunities, formulates different solutions. Continually seeks broad, in-depth information from a range of sources.

Influencing & Impact: Demonstrates strong negotiation, persuasion and relationship building skills, seeks benefit to the business both internally and externally.

Risk and Procedural Awareness: Demonstrates ability to develop and demonstrate an effective use of the business tools in order to analyse financial and non financial risk and gain the necessary procedural knowledge and awareness of how the business operates and how individual actions impact on that business.

Partnership Approach: Demonstrates ability to build successful relationships (Internal and External), Openess to sharing best practices, information, approaches, good ideas and solutions, Networks effectively with customers, suppliers, and other key parts of the value or service-profit chain.

Drive for Results: Demonstrates exceptional delivery every time to high standards – time, cost, quality, efficiency, value. Takes on and achieves stretching challenges, targets and project deadlines. Takes responsibility and accountability for resolving issues that threaten delivery.

Quality, High Standards and Controls: Demonstrates attention to important details that could have a commercial risk and business/customer impact. Makes smart interpretations of regulations and implements the right level of controls. Implements clear, simple, efficient processes; maximises the use of technology for greater efficiency or competitive advantage.

Communication/Influence: Demonstrates communication in an open, candid, complete and consistent manner. Gets messages across clearly in a way others can understand. Listens effectively and probes for new and diverse ideas; Is open to reason and new arguments. Uses facts and personal conviction to influence and persuade; adapts their style to the audience and situation/moment

Example questions:

Give me an example of when you...

Exceeded a customer’s (Internal or External) service expectations?

Had to deal with a service issue with one of your customers?

Worked effectively as part of a team?

Exceeded a stretching performance target?

Failed to reach a pre agreed performance target?

Increased performance levels in your team?

Improved or streamlined a process in order to increase productivity?

Had a difficult decision to make?

Had to face significant problems within your role?

Identified a potential risk to the bank?

Had to communicate a sensitive piece of information to a customer (Internal or External)?

Achieved a significant accomplishment?

Led and motivated a team or peers?Identified a problem within your business area?

Had to deal with a complaint or difficult customer?

Resolved conflict?

Had to change your priorities in order to meet the expectations of your customer?

Had a particularly difficult area of negotiation?

Changed someone’s viewpoint significantly?

Had to deliver a negative message to an external customer?

Made a significant loss?

Have kept up to date with Commercial/Market information?

For any further guidance, please feel free to contact one of our consultants who will be happy to advise you further.